Lumen Winter 2018 - Flipbook - Page 28
THEN AND NOW
Cricket remains one of the great traditions at the University, but
things do change with time. Lumen compared notes with Chris
Owen, who played for the Blacks in the 1980s and returned in the
‘90s to lead them to a premiership, and Bonny Miller, current
co-captain of the University of Adelaide women’s team.
STORY BY CHRIS OWEN AND BONNY MILLER
How did you first become involved?
Chris: I started in the 1981/82 season. I was
studying engineering and in those days the
by-laws of District Cricket dictated that if
you were a student of the University then
it was mandatory to play for the University
of Adelaide Cricket Club. Initially I was a
reluctant recruit. I grew up in the western
suburbs and played junior cricket for
Woodville, so why would I want to go and
play for the ‘silver spooners’ as we called
them? After approaching the first training
session with great trepidation, I soon
discovered what a great club it was.
Above: Chris Owen (front centre) and the A-grade
team he led for a premiership in 1992/93 at the
University cricket ground.
Photo by Bryan Charlton
Right: Bonny Miller (front, second right) with the
University’s B-grade women’s cricket team.
Photo by Adam Butler
Bonny: I was still in school when I decided
that I wanted to play a new sport, and being
a fan of cricket I thought it would be good
to give it a go. I looked online at women’s
cricket teams near me, emailed the secretary
of the University of Adelaide women’s team
and she got back to me straight away despite
the fact that I had zero experience. I started
playing in October that year, aged 17.
Can you take us through a typical game day?
Chris: We arrived at the ground at 10 am, an
hour before the game started. Compared to
today, our preparation was pretty laid back
and ad hoc. Before the game the captain
talked tactics and gave a “rah rah speech.”
I kept it pretty brief, there’s nothing worse
than a captain who talks too much!
The first session went from 11 am to 1 pm,
then we had a 40-minute lunch break. I used
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The University of Adelaide
